With the Memorial Day weekend behind them and the summer tourist season in full swing, Lori’s schedule at the clinic kicked into high gear. The steady stream of appointments kept her so busy that she rose early in the morning and fell asleep late at night and didn’t have a moment to spare to fret about Eternity Springs’s newest citizens.
Until late in the week when a no-show appointment finally gave her time to grab a bite of lunch and check her messages, and she found a long, bombshell text message from Caitlin on her phone. So, Chase’s sister was on her way to Denver with Ali and Lana to go wedding-gown shopping because a new wedding date had been set.
“July Fourth,” Lori murmured. Huh. First Valentine’s Day, now the Fourth of July. Lana must really have a thing for holidays.
Of course, Chase liked holidays, too. Lori would never forget how silly he got about the community Easter egg hunt in Davenport Park. The man always volunteered to be in charge of hiding the eggs, and like a general preparing for battle, he would devise detailed plans for each of the three different age classes of hunters. He had a baseball cap equipped with tall, pink and white rabbit ears that he’d wear during the hunts. He’d wander the field helping the little ones and giving the older kids a hard time.
He’d been in Chizickstan on Easter this year. She wondered if he’d spared a thought for rabbit hats and plastic eggs and chocolate bunnies. Her freshman year at A&M he’d sent her a three-foot-tall chocolate bunny.
Yes, the man should marry on a holiday. Except, he shouldn’t be marrying a reality TV star.
The chime on her office door announced the arrival of her next appointment. Lori was glad for the distraction. However, at the end of her workday, she decided she needed to spend a little time with her own unsettled thoughts, so she loaded her kayak into her SUV and drove to Hummingbird Lake. She found time spent on the water both relaxing and soothing, and in light of the day’s news, she could use a dose of both. She needed to make peace once and for all with the fact that Chase was getting married.
She launched the kayak from the fishing pier and began to paddle the circumference of the lake. Immediately, the water began to work for her and her spirit began to settle.
What a weird start she’d had to this new beginning of hers. When she’d decided to accept Nic’s offer regarding the practice and move back to Eternity Springs, never in a million years would she have thought that Chase would be living here, too. Two streets down and one block over from her, if they moved into the old Carpenter place like rumor had it.
Not that Lori expected they would be there for long. Chase had come home to heal, but he’d get his mojo back and then they’d be off again. In the meantime, Lori had to figure a way to move beyond any awkwardness that would arise from running across Lana or Chase at a mutual friend’s house or in the grocery store.
The thought startled her, and that quickly, her calm disappeared. Oh, jeez. She’d first met Chase in the grocery aisle at the Trading Post. Her teenaged heart had fallen a little bit in love with him at first sight. What if she ran into him among the canned vegetables again?
Fresh is best anyway. Just don’t buy canned. You don’t even like canned veggies. Stay in the fresh produce aisle! Or if you’re desperate, go frozen! Everyone should have a bag of peas in their freezer to use as an ice pack if needed. It’s basic first aid!
First aid? She blew out a sigh of self-disgust and dug her paddle into the water. Seriously, get over yourself, Murphy. Avoidance only made the situation worse. She needed to run into him in the canned vegetable aisle. Face the problem and deal with it.
“Like a vaccination,” she murmured as the orange kayak glided silently forward. That’s how she would think of it. She needed to deal with the situation—with them—in short little shots. That was how vaccines worked. A person took little doses of dead virus so that the body developed antibodies and thus immunity to them. She could think of it as the C&L vaccine.
Pitiful, Murphy. You’re just pitiful.
She paddled hard for a few minutes, chasing off her demons, and searching once again for that elusive peace until a familiar voice hailed her. “Lori! Careful, dear! There’s a submerged log about ten feet from your bow.”
“Yikes! Oh, wow!” Lost in her own thoughts, Lori hadn’t noticed Celeste propelling toward her. The older woman paddled a sparkly gold kayak that was uniquely Celeste Blessing. As usual, just seeing her made Lori smile. She dug her paddle in the water and changed course, avoiding the submerged log and steering toward her friend. “Thanks, Celeste!”
“You’re welcome. I just happened to notice it. I’d have hated for you to bump it and tip over. Hummingbird Lake stays unbearably cold all year long. Remember that Fourth of July after your father came home? The kayak race?”
Lori laughed. “Oh, yes. I’ll never forget that day. Mom and Dad both ended up in the drink.” And she’d ended up a basket case after discovering that her mother was sleeping with the enemy—Cam Murphy.
Without verbal communication, the two women turned their kayaks and began to paddle in the same direction. Lori idly thought that spending time with Celeste was like a double dose of being on the water. The woman soothed just by being near.
“You had a terrible frown on your face before I hailed you, sweetheart. Want to talk about it?”
No. She absolutely didn’t. That didn’t explain why she suddenly ran on from the mouth. “You know that Chase and I were … close.”
“He was your first love.”
My only love. “Yes.”
“You are a little nervous about him and his wife living in Eternity Springs.”
“Yes!”
“You are trying to figure out how to approach the situation.”
“Are you a fortune-teller?”
Her laughter rang out across the sapphire blue of the lake. “I’m simply observant.”
Not simply observant, Lori thought. Uncanny. Prescient. Wise. So ridiculously wise. “How do I handle this, Celeste? Eternity Springs is my home. If it were a big city I could go about my business and not worry about running into him when we both reach for a can of corn. But it’s not a big city. It’s a small town. I can’t avoid them. I don’t want to avoid them. I want it to be easy and natural and not tear my heart in two.”
“Completely understandable.”
“So, what do I do? How do I make that happen?”
”Oh, darling. You don’t need me to tell you this. You know.”
“I don’t—”
“Sure you do. Robert Louis Stevenson said it best: ‘A friend is a gift you give yourself.’”
Out of the blue, tears stung Lori’s eyes. She blinked them away. “I should have taken the job in Seattle.”
“Bosh.” Kindness and compassion gleamed in Celeste’s blue-eyed gaze. “No one ever said that being a small-town girl was easy, but I have total faith that you will rise to the challenge, dear. Look at your forebears. You are both a Murphy and a Reese. Your roots are sunk deep into the soil of Eternity Springs, and you will stand as strong as the mountain that holds your family name. Don’t doubt yourself.”
“It’s hard.”
“Life isn’t meant to be easy.” Celeste pulled her paddle from the water and rested it across the kayak. She waited until Lori met her gaze to add, “But at the same time, you must draw upon lessons of the past and stand strong against the winds of adversity. Generosity of heart provides nutrients to the soil in which grow the roots of strength.”
Lori wished she had a piece of paper and pen to write the sentiment down. Sometimes Celeste’s advice took study to thoroughly understand. This, she feared, was one of those times. Winds of adversity. Generosity of heart. I hope I remember.
“Now, I must paddle on. I’m meeting the Turners for a burger at Murphy’s Pub tonight. Enjoy the rest of your evening, love.”
“You, too, Celeste,” Lori said absently.
She watched the older woman paddle away at a speed that belied her age. Lori could only hope that she was half the athlete that Celeste was when she was her age. And just how old is she, anyway?
Old enough to have stored up enough wisdom to fill Hummingbird Lake and the charm to impart it without coming across as lecturing. Funny. If her mother had said exactly the same thing as Celeste, it probably would have made more sense—but it wouldn’t have made nearly as big of an impression. If her dad had said it … forget it. No way would Cam Murphy use any sort of language that even brushed upon lyrical.
Celeste managed to say just the right thing in exactly the right way. Because even though her advice today was a bit convoluted and less than clear, she’d managed to help Lori figure out how to solve her problem.
She needed to continue what she’d begun by taking the puppy to Chase. She needed to be Chase’s friend. Chase and Lana’s friend. Period.
Lori filled her cheeks with air then blew out a harsh breath. Lovers to friends, rather than the other way around. Not the usual story twist, true, but doable.
Necessary.
Maybe in the next couple of weeks or so Chase’s recovery from his ordeal would have reached the point where he was ready for a double date with her and—well … hmm. She hadn’t been on a single real date since moving home. Brick would step up and fill in if she asked him, but she hated to use the man. Besides, from a couple of comments he’d let slip on their trip to Durango on Saturday, a newcomer to town had caught his notice.
Probably what she should do is begin by inviting Lana to lunch or maybe for happy hour at Murphy’s Pub.
Happy hour. That sounded like a better idea. I could arrive a little early and belt back some liquid courage.
A wry smile on her lips, Lori dipped her paddle back into the cold, blue waters of Hummingbird Lake. Friends with Lana Wilkerson. Who’da thunk it? Excluding anything Timberlake related, could they possibly find any common interests? Was Lana an animal person? Lori had never heard any mention of Lana and pets. Wonder what she would think about Chase’s new position as a temporary foster dad?
Maybe they could talk about the outdoors. Except, Lana would probably find this kayak ride as boring as could be. For Lori, it was just about perfect. Lana made a living challenging nature. Lori found contentment in experiencing it.
Okay, so maybe another subject might work better. Wonder if Lana was a foodie? Lori didn’t bake like her mother, but she loved to experiment in the kitchen. In the past few years, she’d grown to be an excellent cook. And she knew her cheeses, too. Wines, to a point. Okay, she had somewhere to start.
Friendship with Lana Wilkerson soon-to-be Timberlake.
“If I pull this thing off, I’ll have earned a feather for my angel’s wings.”
Two feathers, she decided at the end of the week when she started up to Heartache Falls in order to keep the promised visit with Chase and the dog. Caitlin had called this morning to confirm the dinner they’d planned for this evening, and she’d hesitantly asked if Lori would mind if Lana tagged along.
“I never thought I’d feel sorry for her, but I do,” Caitlin had confessed. “The whole bridal gown shopping trip was just sad. She got a gorgeous dress and she looks fabulous, but … I don’t know … she’s a little desperate.”
Lori had pictured herself in her kayak on Hummingbird Lake and told Caitlin she’d love to have Lana join them.
She played Celtic spa music during her drive, which turned out to be a good thing because when she made the second-to-last hairpin turn before the turnoff to the yurt, she discovered a car pulled over on the side of the road.
Lana. With a flat tire. Looking a bit perplexed. The woman parasails off the side of mountains. Surely she knows how to change a tire.
Well, Lori couldn’t very well drive right by her. It was time to meet her demons and wrestle them into submission. She braked to a stop behind Lana and opened her car door. “Need some help?”
“Hi, Lori.” Lana looked relieved. “I have a flat tire. I was just trying to decide if I should change it myself or ask Chase to do it. I thought it might be good to give him something to do. I worry about him. He doesn’t seem to have much … energy. What do you think?”
Lori hesitated. “From things Caitlin has said, I think he sounds depressed.”
“I know. I’ve tried to talk to him about seeing a counselor. So have his parents—more than once. We thought we’d give him some time, but if this lethargy lingers too much longer, I think we’ll insist.”
And under the circumstances, you think it’s a good idea for him to get married right away? But that wasn’t a question Lori had the nerve or the right to ask aloud. Mac and Ali must think it’s okay or Ali wouldn’t have taken Lana wedding-gown shopping. Instead, Lori said, “Caitlin told me she worries that he sits and broods. That’s why I brought a stray dog up here for him to foster. I thought having a puppy around might pull him out of his funk.”
“I’ve met the dog.” Lana’s lack of enthusiasm was obvious. “I’m not a pet person, I’m afraid.”
That’s just plain sad.
“Fostering is temporary.” Lori explained about the pup’s skittishness and the fireworks in town, then added, “I think changing your tire might do Chase some good. I’m headed to the yurt to check on the puppy. Why don’t you ride with me?”
“Okay. Thanks.”
As they climbed into the car, Lori could almost feel feathers popping onto her wings. A few minutes later, they pulled up to the parking area beside the yurt. “I hope he’s not still in bed this time of the day,” Lana murmured.
“I don’t think so,” Lori replied, and the sound of yips and yaps reached her ears. “Listen.”
They followed the happy puppy noises toward a nearby rise, beyond which stretched a rolling alpine meadow. What they found there surpassed even Lori’s hopes.
Chase wore boots, jeans, and a flannel shirt over a T-shirt. Sometime since her last visit, he’d shaved. And now he drew back his arm and threw a yellow tennis ball into the meadow. The puppy raced after it. Retrieved it. Returned it to Chase. “Attaboy, Captain!”
“Oh, my God,” Lana murmured. “He’s smiling. He just laughed! Is that not one of the most beautiful sounds you’ve ever heard?”
“Yes, it is,” Lori agreed.
Score one for the veterinarian.
* * *
Movement to his right caught Chase’s attention and he was startled to see his visitors. He’d expected Lori to show up sometime today—she always kept her word—but he didn’t anticipate that she’d arrive with Lana. He didn’t like the disappointment he experienced when seeing them together.
Lana rushed toward him, her expression filled with delight. “Oh, Chase. It’s so wonderful to hear you laugh.”
She threw her arms around him, hugging him hard, and Chase stiffened. He put his hands on her upper arms, not returning her embrace, exactly. Something closer to gently pushing her away. “I thought you went to Denver?”
“We got back last night. It was a great trip. I had a really nice time with your mother and sister.”
“That’s good.”
She explained about her flat tire and told him the car’s location. He said he’d change it, then turned his head and met Lori’s gaze. “You came to pick up your dog? You’ve found a home for him?”
“No. Just checking to see how you and your foster are doing. So, you’ve named him Captain?”
Chase’s lips twisted. “More or less.”
“Any problems? He’s eating and sleeping okay?”
No way did he intend to admit that he let the dog sleep in his bed. “He never shuts up. Did you bring a muzzle for him?”
“What? Are you afraid his barking is disturbing the neighbors?” She took an exaggerated look around. When he narrowed his eyes and scowled at her, she laughed and knelt beside Captain who bounded over to her and started licking her hand. “Aren’t you the cutest thing? Smart, too. How long did it take you to teach him to fetch the ball, Chase?”
“No time at all.” It was ridiculous how much pride he felt at the answer.
“He is cute for a dog,” Lana said, making an obvious effort. “Look at all the shades of gold in his coat. Wish my hairdresser could copy that look.”
Lori smiled. “That would be one expensive hair appointment. Long, too.”
Chase shifted uncomfortably. Something about seeing Lana and Lori together and acting friendly bothered him, but he couldn’t put his finger on exactly what. He was glad when Lori stood and faced him.
“Seriously,” she said. “Do you have any issues or questions about his care?”
He shoved his hands in the back pockets of his jeans. “Actually, I’d like you to take a look at his left front paw. He got into some brambles yesterday. I think I got all the thorns out, but he’s been favoring that paw some.”
While Lori examined all of Captain’s feet, Chase asked a few other questions about puppy care. He hunkered down beside her to point out a concerning bump he’d noticed on Captain’s belly, and as she explained away the bulge, a sudden gust of breeze brought the scent of her wafting over him. Her shampoo, her soap, the fragrance that was uniquely Lori. The familiarity of it all but knocked the breath right out of him.
Yearning washed over him. Yearning for the life, for the love, he’d once had. For the person he’d been before events on the other side of the world changed him forever.
Lori’s gaze met his and something of what he was feeling must have shown in his eyes because she suddenly looked startled. Abruptly, she shot to her feet. Chase slowly rose, his stare never leaving hers.
“I’m glad Captain is doing well,” she said, her voice sounding a little tight. “I need to be going.”
Captain bounded toward Lori, then got distracted by his tail and turned in a circle. Ignoring the dog, Chase reached out and touched her arm. “Lori, I…”
I what? Don’t want you to go? Don’t want to hurt like this anymore?
“Thanks for the ride, Lori,” Lana interjected, using that damned falsely perky voice that grated so on his nerves.
Lana. Chase shut his eyes. Guilt washed over him. Craving Lori right in front of Lana? Is that the sort of jerk he’d become?
Maybe. He didn’t really know who the hell he was. Jerk? Failure?
Killer?
Reflexively, his hand formed a fist and he could all but feel the knife hilt in his grasp and the drag of flesh against the blade as he sliced and plunged. Jerk. Failure. Killer.
Avenger.
God, help me. When he opened his eyes again, Lori was gone and Lana stood cuddling the puppy, watching him with a stormy expression. She hated dogs. What the hell was she doing here? Damn, he was tired. Exhausted. He wanted to crawl into his bed and sleep … forever.
Instead, he made his first effort with Lana since they’d fought about the Markhor Pass shoot in Chizickstan. “So, how was Denver? Did you find your dress?”
Storm clouds dissipated and she offered up a hesitant smile. “I did. Your mother is such a sweetheart. You are awfully lucky when it comes to parents, Chase.”
“Yeah. I know that.”
“I found a gorgeous dress and picked out one for your sister to wear—she’ll be my maid of honor, of course. We also found a cake topper. Your mother isn’t going to make our wedding cake. She and Caitlin convinced me that I should take up Maggie Romano’s offer of an Italian cream cake.”
Chase’s throat suddenly tightened. The famous cake. Was there anything that better symbolized an Eternity Springs wedding, Eternity Springs’s relationships, than Maggie Romano’s cake? He murmured, “It’s why I wanted to get married in Eternity Springs.”
“A cake? Seriously, is it that good?”
No, not the cake. The promise of it. The community, the ideals, the sense that no matter how crazy the world has gone elsewhere, in Eternity Springs, honesty and integrity and responsibility matter. Compassion and forgiveness and generosity are on display daily. And the thing that keeps the world of Eternity Springs spinning? Love.
Love that isn’t always perfect, but one that endures.
Enduring love, like what you feel for Lori.
Damn. Chase rubbed the back of his neck. He was so screwed up.
“I have an appointment with Celeste Blessing later today.” Captain began to wriggle and Lana set him on the ground. “She told me she has a storeroom full of antiques that would be perfect to furnish our little cottage in town.”
Antiques? The woman who furnished their entire Manhattan apartment in European Modern was talking antiques? Talk about screwed up. This wasn’t the Lana Wilkerson he knew and, yes, loved.
Because he did love her. Maybe not in the same way he had before … everything. Maybe not the way a man should love the woman he promised to marry. Chase thought it entirely possible that he never could love anyone with a whole heart again. To love with a whole heart, one’s heart must be whole, correct?
“What are we doing, Lana?”
She misunderstood the question. “Well, your mom mentioned that they keep mountain bikes up here. I wouldn’t mind going for a ride. First, though, we should probably go change my flat.”
For an instant, he hovered at the edge of the conversational cliff, ready to make the leap. In the end, cowardice won out. Again. “You’re right. I’ll take care of it, though. You don’t have to come with me.”
“I want to help. Besides, I have something for you in my car. I picked up a gift and I’m totally excited to give it to you.”
She started down the road. Burying a sigh, Chase fell in beside her, his thoughts in turmoil. He needed to get his crap together. He couldn’t let this fairy tale Lana was building continue, and not because of the complicated feelings he had for Lori, either. He needed to get his head on straight because he did still care about Lana, and this “happy small-town housewife” thing she had going on concerned him.
Caring. Concern. Love.
Whoa. Those were emotions. He didn’t want to feel emotions. He couldn’t. He needed the ice around his heart. It was protecting him. If the ice melted, what would hold off the guilt? The grief?
Chase’s stomach made a slow, sick flip. Hell, maybe he’d been wrong about this whole thing from the git-go. Maybe he shouldn’t be anywhere near Eternity Springs and its magic. Maybe after he changed Lana’s tire, they should load up and return to Manhattan. He’d drop the dog off at Lori’s on the way.
Upon reaching the car, Chase made quick work of changing the tire while Lana continued to rattle on about wedding plans. She never once mentioned Thrillseekers, and for the first time since leaving Chizickstan, Chase found himself wondering about it. Out of the blue, he asked, “Has the show been canceled?”
Lana stiffened and darted him a glance. “We’re officially on hiatus. The crew needed to work, and we couldn’t leave them hanging.”
“Everyone found work?”
“Yes.”
“That’s good.” He stowed the jack in the trunk and pushed the lid shut. Glancing at Lana, he saw that her expression had grown pensive. Was she thinking about the loss of her show or the loss of two of her crew? She wasn’t a cold woman. The events in the mountains had not left her emotionally unscathed. Chase had been so wrapped up in his own trauma that he hadn’t spared her psychological state any thought until today.
She’s as screwed up as I am. After all, she’s picking out bedspreads for a house in Eternity Springs.
Catching his look, Lana gave her head a little shake, then beamed a bright smile his way. “Thank you. I have to admit that tire-changing is not on my list of favorite things to do. Gift-giving, on the other hand, is something else entirely.”
She opened the backseat of the car and removed a square gift box tied with a ribbon and sporting a big red bow on top. Excitement and anticipation glittered in her eyes.
It’s wrong. This whole thing is wrong.
“There was a shop just down the street from the bridal salon your mother took me to,” she said. “I thought it was a sign. The owner was extremely helpful and I’m fairly certain I got the right things. Once I decided to do it, I called around to people we know and got recs, but it will be no problem to exchange anything that isn’t what you want.”
“Lana—”
“Open your gift, Chase.”
She shoved the box at him, and coward that he was, he allowed the distraction. He tugged the ribbon, opened the lid, looked inside and froze.
A camera. She’d given him a damned camera.
Blood. Warm and thick and pungent with the scent of copper, it soaked his clothes, his hands, even his hair. His breath came in harsh, shallow pants and his heartbeat continued to thunder. The physical exertion of the past hour and a half had been beyond anything he’d ever experienced. Now, as he stood at the precipice of the rocky cliff, the victorious predator over his kill, he lifted his face toward the sky and roared out his pain, his grief, his fury, and his triumph.
Then with one last heave, one final shout, he threw his camera off the cliff.
Chase hurled the gift box away. “No!”
Then he turned and walked—ran—away.